Earthquake trauma affects the entire society in different ways

Claiming that the earthquake disaster, which is defined as the disaster of the century, affects all of Turkey and the world because of its magnitude, not only those who experienced the earthquake in the region, but also everyone, Psychiatric specialist Uzm. Dr Ecem Çelik said: “As a country, we are in a period of mourning. We witness one painful event after another. On the one hand, as we mourn our people who died, were injured, lost their relatives and became homeless; At the same time, we worry about ourselves and our loved ones. Many of us even feel guilty about these worries. This is a natural process, because after the disasters that we encounter at unexpected moments, we face the fact that life is full of uncertainties and we can face disturbing events at any time. The thought that we could encounter a danger at any time, caused by the images we see on television and on social media, can cause us to experience anxiety symptoms,” he said, providing information on anxiety disorders and anxiety.

In this picture we are in, even individuals who did not experience the earthquake directly and/or did not lose their relatives, loved ones or friends felt anxious, tense, sad and overwhelmed; Psychiatrist Dr. Ecem Çelik said, “You can often think of images of events you have experienced or witnessed. These memories may be accompanied by physical symptoms such as palpitations and sweating. You may have difficulty concentrating or making decisions. You may experience loss of appetite with binge eating and difficulty sleeping or falling asleep. You may experience disagreements and conflicts with those around you, and you may feel the need to withdraw from your social activities and be alone. You may experience physical symptoms such as stress-related headaches, dizziness, nausea, and chest pain. With the fear of an earthquake you can avoid dark environments and you prefer not to be alone. It’s common to experience the symptoms we’re talking about and, to a large extent, they go away over time.”

Anxiety and fear

Stating that anxiety disorders are the most common mental disorders, Psychiatrist, Exp. Dr. Ecem Çelik “It affects about 20 percent of people at some point in their lives. In addition to the disaster we have experienced, we have all had reasons to be concerned in recent years. But sometimes anxiety can come across as more than just a normal response to stress. However, for people with anxiety disorders these fears and worries are not temporary, fear is experienced even when there is no danger, this fear lasts a long time and becomes difficult to control. Generally psychological symptoms such as restlessness, tension, feeling of discomfort, boredom, difficulty concentrating, sleep disturbances; a wide variety of physical symptoms such as headache, dizziness, numbness and drowsiness, ringing in the ears, ringing, dry mouth, palpitations, shortness of breath, stomach bloating, nausea and vomiting, irregular bowel movements, frequent urination; It is accompanied by thoughts such as feeling like you are going to pass out, losing control, or fear of death. Normal fear is a biological protection system of the organism and occurs in the presence of an event that threatens the organism, to escape or to fight the event. It is a necessary emotion to initiate our behavior that allows us to protect ourselves in dangerous situations. . People with an anxiety disorder try to cope with these negative reactions by avoiding situations or experiences that worry them. While avoidance seems beneficial at first because it reduces anxiety, after a while it turns into a situation that prevents the person from living freely and having a comfortable relationship. If you feel anxious most of the day and have trouble controlling this anxiety, if your anxiety prevents you from being social, if it decreases your success at work or school, if you avoid to avoid fear, it’s time to seek help.

What can we do

Specialist, who also made suggestions on what can be done to more easily overcome the difficult process we are going through. Dr. Ecem Çelik continued her words as follows: “First of all, it is extremely important to know that the period you are going through is a difficult one and that the changes in your emotional state are normal. You can seek support from people who care about you, listen to you, and empathize with your situation. Social support is an important part of disaster recovery. Family and friends can be an important resource for this support. You can talk about the feelings you are feeling, the thoughts that are going through your head with your family or close friends, or write them down on paper (sharing helps you realize that you are not alone in your reactions and feelings). Taking care of your daily routine activities (such as eating, sleeping, exercising), creating new routines that you feel are good for you, and continuing your social activities as much as possible will help your mind get away from anxiety. I also want to remind you not to make any major life decisions during this process. “Changing careers or jobs and other major decisions are situations that are quite stressful in their own right and can make it even more difficult to deal with when recovering from a disaster.”

So when should you seek professional help?

exp. Dr. Ecem Çelik, on stage to receive professional support, said: “If you find yourself constantly feeling sad, worried, sad or hopeless, pessimistic; If you feel that you are barely able to perform your daily responsibilities and activities, I recommend that you seek help from mental health professionals to make it easier for you to deal with your emotional reactions such as disbelief , stress, anxiety and sadness. In contrast, to reduce the symptoms of an anxiety disorder, we use psychotherapy or drugs along with psychotherapy, depending on the patient’s characteristics and the severity of the illness. Psychotherapy is a collaborative process in which patients work together to identify fears and develop concrete skills and techniques for coping with fear. “With therapy, patients can reduce the severity and frequency of anxiety symptoms by learning to understand how their thoughts contribute to anxiety symptoms and changing these thought patterns.”